Bombed Roses
by blackfireandredroses
Summary: Kurama knew Karasu would haunt him for the rest of his life, he never thought that his thoughts were literal, until SHE showed up, wanting revenge and wanting to mend her shattered heart. Can Kurama help? KuramaXOC Story's better than summery, please R
1. Prologue

Sitting on a beach, a young girl sat. She had pulled her knees up to her chest and buried her head in them, crying.

"Why?" she cried. "Brother, I don't understand!" She could hear cheering coming from the stadium where she had run from. She had cried through the yelling, the explosions, and now the cheering.

_**They **__must have won_ she thought bitterly. She turned her head a little bit to look over her shoulder and glare at where the sounds were coming from.

She turned her head back. On the ground at her feet lay three things. One was a cross pendant that she had worn since she was a child. It was a black cross with a smaller red cross in the center and a thick, black velvet strip of cloth. The second item was a mask. It was silver with six straps and looked, in her opinion, like a spider. The third item was alive. It moved, or flew rather, with one yellow, and orange eye with a black pupil. It looked back and forth between the pendant and the mask, and than looked at her.

The pendant had been a gift from her brother when she turned 4. The mask belonged to her brother so he could control his power. The green flying thing was one of her brother's personal bombs, that he called Trace Eyes.

"Brother," she cried again. "Why?" She put her head back on her knees and remembered back a few hours ago.

"_Brother!" she called, running down the long dark corridor. The tall and dark man, Karasu, turned from where he was walking with his team to the final battle._

"_Itami?" he asked. He walked to meet her. "You should be in the stands."_

"_I'm sorry, I was training in the forest and missed the time you left the hotel," she apologized._

_Karasu set his hand on her shoulder. "It's okay. I knew you'd be here for the fight."_

_Itami nodded. "Here." She handed out the pendant. "Take it for luck, please?"_

_Karasu looked from it to her, and back. She was the only one in the world who could tell he was smiling beneath his mask. He took it. "Thank you, Itami."_

_Itami nodded, looking down at the ground. She then launched herself into her brother's arms, holding onto him tightly like she used to as a child. She knew her brother was strong, but she was still worried about him fighting. Hearing a cough, she looked around her brother to the small group. "Sorry, Toguro." She bowed and turned to run down the corridor again._

_Karasu turned to rejoin his team._

"_How touching," the younger Toguro sneered. Karasu glared at him, and placed the pendant in a small pocket on the inside of his coat._

"_Sakyo," Karasu said to their manager. _

"_Hmm?" the man asked, looking at him._

_Karasu showed him the pendant in his pocket. "Make sure this gets back to Itami."_

_After a moment, Sakyo nodded, and the team walked out into the arena. Itami stood by the railing a few floors up. She didn't want to sit. She watched as her brother walked out into the arena, and watched, from the same place, him walk up to face his opponent: the red headed human version, of Kurama._

"_Please come back, Brother," she said to herself of the announcer gave the go, and the fight began._

Itami sat on the beach for hours after the cheering stopped. The little Trace Eye watched her nervously, still sitting next to the mask and pendant. It wasn't until late at night when she finally picked the pendant up, and let the Trace Eye tie it around her neck. She picked the mask up and put it into her worn out jean bag she had next to her. Standing, she put the bag over her head so it could sit the way it was supposed to: the strap going across her chest, and the bag itself resting on her hip.

"Come on Tracer," she said to the Trace Eye. She reached out her arms and the little bomb flew into them. "Let's go."


	2. Chapter 1: The Fight

_Throughout the entire fight, Itami stood where she was. She cheered for her brother along with the other demons. She gasped at close calls, and cry out at even closer calls._

_When Karasu first made a huge explosion, she cheered, thinking it was over. When Youko showed up, she seemed a little uneasy. Even she had heard of the notorious bandit. When Youko's plants engulfed her brother, she gasped and stood there, praying to anyone who would listen._

_When Karasu blew the plants up she sighed in relief, only to tense up again when she saw his mask had fallen off._

"_Oh, Brother," she muttered to herself. "Please end this soon, don't toy with him."_

_Karasu sent his explosion, which caused her to grab her bag, which she had set down next to her on the ground, and jump off to the side. Luckily she ducked in time so she didn't get hit with anything. Once the dust cleared, she was on her feet looking for her brother. In her fear and hurry to get out of the way, she had summoned Tracer, her bomb gaurdian._

_It whined as it rested on her shoulder, sensing her tension. She reached one hand up to pet it as she continue to watch._

_When the red head fell, she thought it was over. Her brother would pick up his mask, and return to normal as the other's fought their battles. By the end of all the fights, he'd be back to normal, and they could go home with the promised prize that was to come out of this competition. They could go back to their normal lives, right?_

_Wrong. The red head had to keep getting up. He launched a final attack, and what scared Itami the most, was that it hit its target head on._

_She was frozen where she stood, both hands gripping the railing as she watched the blood sucking plant devour her brother._

"_No," she said softly, shaking her head, tears appearing in her eyes. Tracer whined again. "No."_

_Karasu looked right at her, a final smile on his lips, in apology, before the plant over took him entirely._

"_Karasu!" Itami yelled as the crowd cheered. Her cries being drowned out. Her legs gave out on her and she slunk down to her knees. "Brother," she cried._

_She ran after that, Tracer scrambled to fly and keep up with her. She got to the entrance, having heard the final call. She couldn't help but think the fox had gotten what he deserved._

"_Itami!" a sharp call caused her to stop and look back._

"_Sakyo," she said. The manager walked up to her._

"_Karasu wanted me to give this back to you," he said, holding out her pendant. "And I figured you would want this." He handed her Karasu's mask. "Sorry."_

_He turned and walked away. Itami stared at the two things in her hands. Tracer came to hover at her shoulder. He shook, only because she was shaking out of pain and anger._

"_Damn right you're sorry," she growled. "You and Toguro are the reason he was even in this goddamn tournament!"_

_She turned and ran again, to the beach side, where she collapsed. She sat with her knees to her chest, and cried out the rest of the tournament._


	3. Chapter 2: Tailing and Mothers

Kurama walked down his street with Yusuke, Kuwabara and Keiko. His friends were talking about things like school, and training, where as he was off in space. He wasn't usually like that, but something was bothering him. There had been a slight tug on his sixth sense lately, and he couldn't pinpoint where it was.

"Hello! Earth to Kurama!" Yusuke yelled.

"Huh?" he asked, looking over at his friend.

Yusuke huffed, "I said we're going to the arcade, wanna come?"

"Oh," Kurama said, "No thank you, Yusuke."

"Are you sure?" Yusuke asked. "You've been a little out of it lately.

"It's nothing," he lied. He wasn't sure what it was, so he thought it'd be a good idea to keep it to himself until he could figure out at least what it was. There's no point in worrying the others over nothing.

He left his friends when he they passed his house. Walking through his door, he felt the twinge again, and if he wasn't mistaken, it was closer. He shook it off as he went up to his room to start his homework.

Across the street in a tree, Itami sat on a branch. She was hidden by the leaves, so the only way she'd be seen is if the wind blew the leaves to the side. She had been following Shuichi Minamino for the past few days.

At first, he had confused her. Who was Shuichi? That was until she heard the leader of his team call him Kurama, and she was able to piece together what was happening.

"Okay," she breathed to herself. She sighed. She would have attacked the guy earlier, but each time she went to attack, one of his friends would run up to him. She was only targeting the red head, and she saw no need for mindless killing of those she didn't care about.

She summoned Tracer and the little bomb hovered at her shoulder.

"What do you think, Tracer?" she asked. "Should I give it a try or will this backfire too?"

It squeaked. This was the first time she had followed the red head to his home, and the little thing wasn't very sure about things. He was worried about his Master's sister. He had been trained to look after her, and he was good at his job. He didn't want anything to happen to her.

She nodded, understanding that the creature was unsure. She had had him since she was three, if she didn't understand him now, she never would.

"Okay, let's. . ." she was about to jump out of the tree, until another boy ran up to the house and into it.

"Hey, Shuichi!" he called.

From her perch, she saw Kurama stand and walk downstairs to where the boy was rifling through the fridge.

"How was school?" Kurama asked him.

"The usual," the boy shrugged. "When will Mom and Dad be home?"

"Mom's out at the store and should be back soon and Dad will be home around 6," Kurama replied. "Are you hungry?"

"Yeah," the boy replied. "Starved, I gave my lunch to my friend who got his jacked."

Kurama laughed, "Alright, I'll make you a snack."

"Alright!" the older boy called out happily. "You're the best brother ever!"

"Brother?" Itami said to herself. "He has a little brother?" Tracer whined next to her and settled on her shoulder, trying to comfort her.

"Brother," it whined. It had picked up a few words from Itami, but she could never teach him how to speak in full sentences.

Kurama's brother finished his snack, and called that he was going to a friends to study. As he ran down the street, Itami watched him go, before turning back to where Kurama was back in his room.

"Now can I go without being interrupted?" she called to no one in particular. She quickly ran across the street so she was in another tree to the side of the house, Tracer flying after her. She sighed and started conjuring a bomb to her hand.

As she was about to, another voice called from the front door, and Itami growled before stopping her bomb's progression.

"Shuichi!" the woman called. She was aging, as you could tell from her graying hair and lines around her soft and warm eyes.

Again, Kurama came down the stairs and helped the woman with the groceries she had.

"Thank you," she said. Kurama hugged her once both of their hands were free.

"Are you okay, Mother?" he asked.

"I'm fine," she said. "Thank you for asking."

"Mother?" Itami asked. Tracer whined again, longer and louder. "I wonder if she's. . . like her." For a few minutes, she sat with her back against the trunk of the tree, and watched the woman and Kurama. The way they acted, her smile, everything. Tracer sat in her lap, his wings folded neatly at his sides as he watched, occasionally looking up at Itami. Itami herself was looking off into space, her arms around her little guardian, her dark blue eyes glazed over slightly as she lost herself to yet another painful memory.

"_Mommy?" a young Itami asked. She peered through the door of her mother's personal room._

"_Itami?" her mother asked. "What's wrong?" Her daughter was covered in cuts and bruises. "What happened?"_

_Itami walked over to her and climbed in her lap. "Master hit me," she said._

_Her mother took a sharp intake of breath. "Why?"_

"_Because I called him 'Father,'" Itami replied quietly. "Mommy, why does Master hate me?"_

_Her mother tucked her head under her own. She could feel her mother's shoulders shake a bit, and when she answered, it was quiet, "Whatever the reason, it's not your fault. It was never your fault."_


	4. 3: Her Birth and the Start of Her Pain

_In a small room of a house, a woman screamed in pain. Her maidens around her encouraged her. A man in the corner stood with his arms folded across his chest. He was broad shouldered, short black hair, and rock hard blue eyes. At his side stood a small boy, no older than five years. He had long black hair, dark blue eyes, and, unlike his father, was slim. He also wore a mask over his nose and mouth. He watched with wide eyes as his mother attempted to bring his sibling into the world. _

_His mother was thinner than he was with long black hair, and paler skin. Her eyes were the same blue as his. He watched silently, occasionally looking up at his father. When he heard a shrill cry, he looked over at the group of women._

_His mother lay panting as the other women cleaned his sibling up. His father had moved to stand full upright as he waited for someone to tell him what he wanted to know._

_The oldest nurse looked over at him, holding the child in her arms._

"_It's a girl," she said quietly._

_Karasu saw his father tense, and heard him growl. He saw his mother look about to cry as she sent a pleading look at his father._

"_Get rid of it," he said, and started walking out of the room._

_Karasu's mother cried. The oldest nurse and the other women all looked ready to join her. This would be the last child his mother would be able to bear, and now it wasn't what his father was pleased with._

_He walked over to look at the young girl. She had very short black hair and the same blue eyes as his. She looked up at him, eyes locked together, and she smiled at him._

"_Father," he said. His father was just about to leave and he turned his head to look at his son. "Can't we keep her?" He reached out, as if to take the child from the nurse. Since the woman was startled by his question, she let him take her._

_Karasu held the girl in his arms. She was still smiling up at him. He looked up at his father. He was glaring at the baby in his arms._

"_Please can we keep her?" he asked again. His father glared at him._

"_Fine," he growled. "We'll keep the little pain."_

_The room automatically lightened. His mother's tears became tears of joy, and the women all smiled. Karasu smiled under his mask, no one could see it. Surprisingly, when he did smile, his sister laughed and tugged on a strand of his hair. He smiled a little wider._

"_What should we name her?" one of the younger nurses asked his mother._

"_Itami," his father answered her, not giving his wife a chance to answer. "For pain." With that, he turned and left the room._

"_She'll have one hard time growing up," the younger nurse said. "With a father like that." The others nodded._

"_True," Karasu's mother said. She motioned for him to come to her side, and he did, with Itami still in his arms. She placed on hand on his shoulder tiredly and stroked her daughter's hair with her other hand. "But at least she has a brother to help her." She smiled at Karasu._

_Itami laughed again as she pulled her brother's hair again. He looked at her, and tightened his grip on her slightly. He would help her, for the sake of his mother, he'd look after her._

**Hi everyone!! I hope u like the story so far, reviews r much appreciated! They help me update faster :D Thanx 4 reading!**


	5. Ch 4: A Mother Nothing Can Replace

_A few years later, Itami was two, her third birthday in a few days. She walked around her house next to her brother, her hand in his. He was listening to one of his many instructors as he walked with his sister._

_They stopped for a second out by their backyard. It was a very dim backyard. The whole realm they lived in was dark. Rocky terrain, black sky, dead plants. Their backyard consisted of a dried up stream and pond, a few dead and charred trees, and a tall gray wall that was taller than the Master himself, and he was at least six feet tall._

_Karasu and Itami saw their mother and father arguing by the pond. Their mother was standing in front of a few of the sitting rocks that were around the pond. Their father was in front of her, yelling._

"_Brother," Itami said, looking up at him. "Why are Mommy and Master fighting?" Since his father wanted nothing to do with her, she never referred to him as her father. The last time she did, and he heard, she ended up with a bunch of injuries._

"_I don't know," he answered her. His instructor sighed._

"_Shall we continue, Master Karasu?" he asked. He gave a short glare at Itami._

"_Not now," Karasu said. He started walking over to his parents, Itami still at his side._

_They were still too far away to hear the argument, but they did see their father push their mother. She tripped over the rocks and landed on the dry bed of the pond._

"_Mommy!" Itami cried. She let go of her brother and ran over to her, jumping over the rocks. Karasu had to smirk._

_His sister was wearing a black skirt that went to her shins and a gray blouse. She also had black boots that had a slight heel. Why they were letting a two year old where heels was beyond him, but she seemed to get along with it okay. In her dark hair, she wore a black ribbon that was tied into a bow on the right side of her hair. He ran up to them._

"_I'm okay, Itami," their mother told her as she sat up. Their father huffed, glared daggers at Itami and then turned and stomped off. Karasu climbed over the rocks to stand next to his sister who was kneeling next to their mother._

_Their mother stood, and Karasu helped his sister up. Itami wiped her knees off and stood in front of her mother._

"_Mommy," she said, "Why were you and Master fighting?"_

_Their mother smiled, and Karasu saw tears build up in her eyes. "Oh, Itami." She cried and fell to her knees, hugging her daughter close to her and crying onto her small shoulder. "My darling daughter. I'm sorry."_

_Itami looked up at Karasu, with a question look on her face. He didn't know what to do or say. They stood quietly as their mother cried on Itami's shoulder. Itami hugged her, and Karasu stood silently off to the side. Neither sibling knew what was going on._

_A few days later, on the day of Itami's third birthday, Itami ran up to Karasu early in the morning. She was still in her pajamas, and was crying._

"_Brother, come quick," she said, tugging on his arm. He had barely changed and come out of his room when she ran up to him. "Mommy and Master are fighting again, but this time it's worse!"_

_Karasu let her pull him to the hallway by her room. She had been right in that they were fighting, but it was worse. Their mother had bruises on her face, and her kimono was ripped._

"_What's going on here?" Karasu asked._

_Both parents looked over at him, but what he saw, was that they both zeroed in on Itami who was standing next to him, holding his hand. His mother looked horrified she was there, and his father looked enraged._

"_That has been slowing down his production!" their father bellowed, pointing at Itami. She gasped in fear and hid behind her brother._

"_It's not her fault she's the way she is!" their mother shouted back. "She's done nothing wrong!"_

"_Says you!" their father shouted back, shoving his wife against the wall._

"_Mommy?" Itami squeaked, peering out from behind Karasu._

"_Father, stop it!" Karasu called._

_His father growled and slammed his wife against the wall even harder._

"_Mommy!" Itami cried. Karasu started forward to break the fight between his parents up. Itami ran around him._

"_Itami, wait!" Karasu tried to grab her, to stop her. She ducked under his arm._

"_Leave her alone!" she cried, going to push their father away from their mother._

_Instead, there was a huge explosion that blew them all back. Karasu had barely a second to catch his sister before she slammed to the ground._

_That was the day they found out that Itami could control bombs like her brother. That was also the day their mother died._

**It's so sad, I know!! TT-TT I still cant believe I can even write this, its so different from what I usually do. . . Please review!!**


	6. Chapter 5: The Small Confrontation

**Disclaimer: I DO NOT own Yu Yu Hakusho.**

**If I did, a lot of things would be different, and certain people would still be alive. Ok? Ok.**

**Itami: sorry, she just had to get that out of the way.**

**Me: Of course. And that reminds me. . . I DO own Itami.**

**Itami: Huh?**

**Me: what? I created u, I have rights to u as my character**

**Itami: whatever. . .**

**Me: *goes off to find Karasu***

**Itami: hey! No fair hiding behind my brother**

**Me: being the author rules!!**

**Itami: ignore her, and here's the chapter**

**Me: 'ignore her'? I feel loved. . . .**

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By the time Itami came back to her senses, the sun had set. Kurama was sitting at the dining room table with his family. His father, brother, and his mother.

"Mother," Itami said. She sighed. "Brother." Tracer rubbed his head against her chin. "I hate this life." Tracer whined. "What's the point of being a demon if you don't want to prolong your life?" She watched the red head finish eating and talk with his family. He then went back to his room.

Itami changed trees again so she could continue to watch him.

"Humans," she said, "Are boring." Tracer, who was still in her lap, nodded.

The next day, Kurama decided to walk through the park after school. He was walking through the trees when, once again, he felt the twinge. It was a lot closer this time. He stopped and looked around him, acting as if he was simply looking at the plants around him.

There, in the trees a few feet away from him, was something. He saw it, but it moved before he could tell exactly what it was. He stood there for a few more minutes, and then walked on.

At the end of the small pathway, where it opened up to the actual park, was a girl. She was only a few inches shorted than he was, with long, sleek black hair that fell to her waist. He couldn't see her face very well due to the way the sun was in the sky, and the fact she had her back to him. She wore a black and dark gray hoodie, black jeans, and converse.

She didn't bother him. There were a lot of girls in his town that he hadn't met; he thought she was one of them. That was until a few steps later when he sensed an unknown aura coming from the girl. He stopped. He knew he had felt this aura before from someone else.

The girl turned to face him. She had dark blue eyes, and wore a cloth mask over her nose and mouth. Kurama gasped in realization. The aura he had sensed, and who the girl reminded him of: Karasu.

She looked at him, and he noticed he was shaking slightly. The girl glared at him, and charged. Kurama barley dodged her attack. A small explosion sounded, and he cried out in pain. She had been close enough to set a bomb on his sleeve.

He stepped away from her, grabbing his arm. "Who are you?" he asked.

She looked at him, the glare still in place. He had to admit, she was cute. She looked young, his age at least. She looked like a child pouting. Why he thought that, he didn't know, and he mentally slapped himself.

"What do you want?" he asked when she didn't answer.

"It should be obvious," she replied.

"S-Something to do with Karasu?" he guessed. He had stuttered, but the man had terrified him in the brief experience he had had with him.

She didn't nod, and he couldn't tell what her expression was under her mask. He took a step away from her again, and she charged at him again. He dodged, and sent his ki into the surrounding trees. They sprung to life and the branches blocked her from charging again. When he saw she was detained, he turned and sprinted.

Itami growled and summoned Tracer, saying, "Follow him." The little bomb easily avoided the branches, and was able to follow the fleeing red head without being noticed.

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**I apologize that this chapter is so short!! I promise the next one will be longer.**

**Thank u to those who review! It really helps me to get motivated and update faster :D**

**Itami: please let her update faster so I can leave the misery behind!!**

**Me: relax, ill make it up to u, I promise.**

**Itami: u'd better.**

**Me: be nice, or ill go find Karasu again.**

**Itami: Fine. Please review!!!**


	7. Chapter 6: Understanding?

Itami: Im back! : D

Me: yeah. . . Do u mind doing the disclaimer?

Itami: ok. She DOES NOT own Yu Yu Hakusho, but I AM her own personal made character.

Me: thank u. here's the chapter ; P

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Kurama ran all the way to Genkai's temple. He stumbled on a few of the stairs, but was able to make it to the door.

"Kurama," Yukina said, surprised when he burst through the door.

"Is Genkai or Yusuke here?" he asked her.

"Y-Yes," she stuttered. She saw his arm, and gasped, "You're hurt." She walked over to him and made him sit.

"I'm fine, Yukina," Kurama said. "It's not deep."

"What's going on in here?" Genkai asked, walking into the room, Yusuke and Botan behind her. She looked from Yukina, to Kurama's injured arm, to Kurama.

Yusuke asked, "What the hell happened to you?"

"I was attacked," Kurama said.

"By who?" Yusuke asked back. "And why didn't you kick their ass?"

"I. . ." he couldn't answer that. He barely knew. "I swear she looked and fought like Karasu." That shut Yusuke up.

"N-No way," Botan said, shaking her head. "Karasu's dead, you killed him in the Dark Tournament. Years ago."

"It was only a year ago, Botan," Genkai corrected her. "And she's right, he's dead."

"Does he have a sibling?" Kurama asked, getting a little desperate. "I know she's connected to him somehow. She looked like him, she control's bombs like him, and her aura's like his too."

"Calm down, Foxboy," Yusuke said. "Let's call Koenma and asked him. He should know, right?"

"He should," Genkai asked. "Botan, call him." Botan nodded and left to get her communicator device from the other room.

Yukina finished healing Kurama's arm and said, "That should help."

"Thank you, Yukina," Kurama said. He was still shaking. The girl's dead blue eyes were still playing in his head. She looked like Karasu, just without the emotion. She nodded.

"I'll make some tea," she stated standing. "That'll help with the shock."

Botan hurried back into the room and set the communicator on the table. She opened it up and hit the button. A few seconds later, Koenma's face appeared on the screen.

He was yelling at an Ogre, and when he saw Botan, he asked, "What has Yusuke done now?"

"Hey!" Yusuke called from behind Botan. "Why do you always blame me?"

"Shut up!" Genkai yelled. "Koenma, we might have a situation."

"What kind of situation?" the toddler asked.

"Kurama was attacked," Genkai told him. "And he says she acted and looked a lot like Karasu."

"Wha!" the toddler fell out of his oversized chair. "B-But that's impossible! Karasu died at the Dark Tournament!"

"We know that!" Genkai snapped. "We're wondering if he had a sibling or something."

"Hm," Koenma said. "I'll check and get back to you when I can."

"That had better be quick," Yusuke said. "We don't have forever." Koenma muttered something under his breathe about being ordered around by Yusuke, and cut the connection.

"Damn brat," Yusuke said. As they were talking, Yukina had brought the tea in, and Kurama had calmed down enough to stop shaking.

"Are you okay, Kurama?" Yukina asked.

"Yes, I'm fine," he replied. "Thank you, Yukina." She nodded.

Genkai sighed, "If Karasu does have a sibling, things could get ugly."

"How so?" Botan asked. "I mean, I get Kurama killed him, but, is he really in danger from it."

"Does the fact that this girl attacked Kurama make u understand that yes, he's in danger?" Yusuke asked sarcastically.

Botan laughed nervously, "Oh, right. Sorry."

"Master Genkai," Kurama said. "May I use your phone, please? I ran straight here after the attack when I was supposed to go home."

Genkai nodded, "Yes, go ahead. Tell Shiori that you're staying with a study partner, it's not a good idea to be alone, or among humans, if this girl is after you."

"She is persistent," they all looked towards the door. Hiei stood there, with one hand in his pocket, and another holding both wings of a small Trace Eye. They all stared at the little demon. It was panicking its head off, if that was possible. It kept jerking around, trying to free its wings from Hiei's grip. Its one eye was so wide, it looked like it could pop out at any second. It was also squealing loudly.

"I found this thing spying outside the door," Hiei said, looking up at them. They were still staring at the small demon. "What are you all staring at, you've seen this thing before."

"W-We know," Botan stuttered.

"That's why we're worried now," Yusuke said. "Didn't Karasu have a bunch of those?"

"Yes," Hiei said warily. He had only heard Genkai's last sentence. He didn't know the full situation yet. They filled him in. He glared at Yusuke, who had told him, tightening his grip on the exhausted demon's wings. It squealed and started thrashing again, harder.

"Hiei," Yukina said, "You're hurting it."

"Gah," Yusuke said. He clasped his hands over his ears and yelled, "Shut it up!" It was that loud.

Hiei was about to hit it in the head to knock it out, when it vanished. It puffed to smoke, and was nowhere to be found.

"Where the hell did it go?" Yusuke asked. No one answered. Hiei glared at the empty air space the Trace Eye had taken up, and dropped his arms back to his side, putting them in his pockets.

"She's good," Genkai said. "But being influenced by anger will make this easy. Even so, we still need to keep our eyes open." Everyone nodded in agreement.

Tracer popped up again next to Itami. She had dismissed him back to the special realm he lived in when she didn't need him, and re-summoned him back to her when she heard his shrill squeal. Since he couldn't talk and they didn't have a telepathic connection, that was his way of asking for help. It also annoyed the hell out of whoever was posing the threat.

The little green demon ducked to hide behind her hair, resting against the back of her neck, shivering. His wings stuck out to the side, making it look like she had wings on her neck.

Itami pet him, the best she could considering where he was, saying softly, "Shh, it's okay, Tracer. You're okay." She looked back at the temple. She was in a high tree a few miles away. "Hide all you want," she said aloud. "But your friends can't watch you forever."

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Itami: *hugs Tracer* poor Tracer!

Me: sorry, Tracer. . . But, yeah. Please review!!


	8. Chapter 7: A Plan of Action or Death?

**I DO NOT own Yu Yu Hakusho, but Itami IS my own character.**

**Itami: And she doesn't own Trace Eyes, but my guardian Tracer is hers.**

**Me: Enjoy!**

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Kurama woke early the next morning. Thankfully he didn't have school today, so he could hopefully get a lead on what was going on. He sat by the window as the sun rose, lost in his thoughts.

He heard Genkai moving around a few minutes later and stood to go meet her in the other room. As he walked out, he saw that Yukina was awake as well, and had started making breakfast. He walked over to her.

"Would you like some help?" he asked.

"Oh," she jumped slightly.

"Sorry," he apologized, "I didn't mean to startle you."

She laughed lightly, "Don't worry about it, Kurama. And yes, I'd like some help. Will you make the tea please?" He nodded and found the kettle. When they were done, Yukina asked, "Will you ask Hiei if he'll be joining us? He's out in the tree."

Kurama walked outside and over to the tree, "Hiei, would you like to come in and eat?"

"Hn," he replied. His usual answer. He jumped down and landed next to him, following him back inside. It was silent as they ate, everyone lost in their own thoughts. When they were done, Yusuke and Kuwabara walked in.

"Morning Yukina," Kuwabara said, automatically by the young girl's side.

"Oh, good morning, Kazuma," she replied, smiling. Hiei growled at him.

"Calm down ya shrimp," Kuwabara told him, only causing his glare to increase in strength. "So, Urameshi tells me we have a problem with a demon girl or something."

"He wasn't really listening," Yusuke said. Kuwabara glared at him.

"This 'demon girl,' as you put it," Genkai stated, "tried to kill Kurama yesterday. And her demon bomb was spying on us last night as well."

"Yeah, so?" Kuwabara asked, shrugging. "Kurama defeated Karasu, this girl shouldn't be a problem." Hiei growled. Stalking over to the carrot top, he slammed his fist into his head.

"You idiot," Hiei growled. "If this wasn't a problem, Kurama wouldn't be asking for help, now would he?"

"Enough!" Genkai shouted before the fight could progress. "We should be planning, not fighting!"

"Um," they looked up. Botan stood at the door, a nervous expression on her face and the communicator in her hand. "Am I interrupting something?"

"No, Botan," Genkai said.

"Kuwabara was only being an idiot," Yusuke said.

"Shut up, Urameshi!" Kuwabara yelled.

"Uh, well," Botan started. "Koenma found what you were asking for."

"He did?" Yusuke asked. "Well, come on Botan, out with it."

She walked over and set the communicator up on the table. Koenma appeared on the screen.

"Right, well," he started. "To answer your question, he does have a sibling. A younger sister who is five years younger than him. That's all we know about her though. The head of their household, who is also their father, never said anything about her."

"Why?" Yusuke asked. "What's to gain about keeping her a secret."

Koenma shrugged. "I don't know. Their entire house was destroyed 14 years ago, with no sign of either Karasu or his sister. We don't know what happened."

Kurama thought about that. He glanced outside. _I wonder what happened._ he thought.

"What will your action be now that you know?" Koenma asked. When Kurama looked at the communicator, he saw the toddler looking at him.

"Maybe," he started. "Maybe we should visit where the house stood. We might be able to find something you missed."

Koenma was silent for a moment, and nodded. "Very well. Yusuke, Kuwabara, Hiei and you can scope it out. Just be careful. If this girl is anything like her brother, well, you know. Even Youko had trouble with Karasu, let's not relive that fight with this girl."

"I understand," Kurama said, nodding.

"Thank you, Koenma," Genkai said. The connection was cut.

"Are you sure that's a good idea, Kurama?" Kuwabara asked. "I mean, if she is trying to kill you, wouldn't it be a better idea to stay as far away from her as possible?"

"Yes," Kurama answered. "It would be a better idea. I would stay away if I wasn't so curious on why she hates me so much. It wasn't an intentional kill, and I'm sure she knows that. So then why try to kill me?"

Kuwabara shook his head. "It's that big brain of yours that's going to kill you one day, Kurama. You know that right."

"I agree with the Fox," Hiei inserted. "There's more to the story, and until we can decide what to do about the girl, we have to know the full version."

Kuwabara glared at him, but hesitantly nodded, saying, "Okay, I guess. As long as you two know what you're doing."

"What," Kurama asked. "Don't you trust us?" He smiled, and Hiei smirked.

"Whatever," Kuwabara said. Yusuke laughed at his friend.

"Okay," Yusuke said. "We leave for the Demon Plane tomorrow then."

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**Itami: Is that a good idea?**

**Me: we'll have to continue to find out 'w'**

**Itami: ok. . . I guess**

**Me: Please review!**

**Itami: Tracer will give u a hug if u do!!**


	9. Ch 8: Given a Guardian & Possibly Hope

**I DO NOT own Yu Yu Hakusho. Itami was made by me though.**

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Itami sighed, lying in a tree. Things were quiet except for the occasional chirp of crickets.

"Why is the Human World so calm?" she asked aloud to no one in particular. Tracer was asleep on her stomach, one of her arms softly petting the little demon's head. Her other arm was behind her head, propping it up as she looked up at the stars that made up the sky. She sighed again. "Why can't my world be as calm as this?"

She sat up slowly, careful to not wake Tracer. The arm that was behind her head moved to her neck, where her pendant hung. She had overhead the Fox say he was going to her old home. He wouldn't find anything, she knew that for a fact. She grasped the pendant in her hand.

"_Itami?" Karasu called. "Itami, where are you?" He walked through the dead forest that spread out behind their home. He sighed as he duck under some branches. "Itami, come on. It's only me, Karasu. Where are you?" Hearing a sniffling sound he looked over. _

_Under a tall, dead oak, his sister sat. Her knees where brought up to her chest and her arms were wrapped around them. Her head was buried in her knees, and her shoulders were shaking as she cried. Her outfit was torn from her running through the trees and having the branches tug at her skirt and blouse. Karasu held the ribbon that had been in her hair. He had found it on a branch when he started looking for her._

"_Itami," he said softly as he walked over to her. He sat down next to her. "Are you still upset about this morning?"_

"_Why wouldn't I be?" she cried. "I killed our mother!"_

"_That wasn't your fault," he told her sternly. "You didn't know about the bombs, no one did."_

_When the smoke had cleared and the damage was seen, it wasn't long before their father went after Itami. She barely had five minutes to change and run as Karasu tried to calm his father down. Now, he wasn't mad that the blast had killed his wife, oh no. He was mad about the amount of property that had been destroyed._

_Luckily, the five minutes was enough for her to climb the dead tree they had in the backyard, jump over the wall, and run into the forest. Karasu had spent most of the day attempting to calm his father down. His father would never raise a fist against him, only because he expected Karasu to take over the household when he was old enough, but with Itami, it was an entirely different story. Now that their mother was dead, it would be dangerous for Itami to be alone in her own home. Karasu knew this all to well._

_He set his arm around his sister's still shaking shoulders. "You know you didn't explode the hall on purpose," he told her. "This just means you have talent."_

"_That I don't know how to handle," she finished._

"_Then I'll teach you," he said. She sniffled and looked up at him._

"_Master won't like that," she stated._

_Karasu shook his head. "Don't worry about if Father would like it or not. If you don't learn now, you could blow something else up later."_

_She sighed, "Karasu, we both know he hates me."_

"_I don't care," he said. "He's the only one who does. Mother and I don't hate you." She sniffled again. "I know you're scared of him, but you don't have to be."_

_She laid her head on his shoulder. "But, Brother, I can't defend myself against him."_

_He sighed, and then an idea hit him. "I know," he said. "That's why I've been working on something since you were born."_

"_Huh?" she asked._

_He nodded. "Mother asked me to protect you, but I can't be around you 24/7. So I thought of a way I can protect you from Father without actually needing to be there."_

"_How?"_

"_You remember my Trace Eye bombs?" he asked her. She nodded. She had seen ever bomb her brother had, since she would usually watch his training sessions. Karasu summoned one to his side. The little demon flew in front of them both. "Well, I taught one to be a guardian."_

"_A guardian?" she repeated, reaching out and petting the demon's head._

"_To help me protect you," Karasu said softly._

_The Trace Eye squealed happily and flew into Itami's arms, rubbing his head against her. She giggled._

"_Thank you, Brother," she said. He smiled. _

"_Don't worry about Father," he said. "Just focus on your power."_

"_Okay," she agreed, nodding and smiling._

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**Thank u to everyone who's read and commented up to this point!! And so the memories continue. . . ' w '**


	10. Ch 9: Again, It was Taken On My Birthday

**I DO NOT own Yu Yu Hakusho. . . I DO own Itami**

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Itami sighed again, looking down at Tracer and smiling. She stroked its head as it snuggled closer to her. He was supposed to be her guardian, but he acted like a child a lot. She didn't mind.

"And so it began," she said aloud. She looked back up at the stars.

"_All you have to do is focus," Karasu told her. "Think of the bomb, and focus your energy to your hand. Okay?"_

_Itami nodded. Her and her brother sat on the wall. Their father glared at them from the house._

_When they had gotten back from the forest, everything was calm so long as Itami stayed by Karasu. Of course though, he had a lesson session that night and had to leave. As soon as he did, his father went after Itami. _

_Luckily she wasn't hurt too bad. She didn't have Tracer, as she named him on the way back to the house, out at the moment. She automatically summoned him after the first hit though. The little bomb had growled, and their father glared at it and her, before stomping off. So now, the one bruise on her temple was healing as she sat with her brother a few days later._

"_Focus," she repeated. "Okay." She tried, and caused a small explosion, covering both of them, three if you counted Tracer who was hovering next to them, in soot. Itami coughed. Karasu chuckled._

"_Remind me to find you a mask," he told her._

"_Like yours?" she asked._

"_More or less," he replied. "Mine's to help control my powers, where as you don't have that problem. Just something that will prevent you from breathing in the soot and smoke from your bombs."_

"_Sounds reasonable," she agreed._

"_Karasu!" the father shouted. Itami flinched slightly at his harsh tone._

"_Ignore him," Karasu told her. He took her hand, "And focus." He smiled and jumped from the wall. He ran over to his father. Itami knew he was yelling at her brother about training her, but was relieved to know her brother was on her side. She smiled to herself._

"_Focus, focus," Tracer chimed. She smiled a little wider. She had been surprised to find that this Trace Eye could talk, but got over it. She was happy to have someone to talk to when her brother was at one of his lessons._

"_Right," she told the little demon. "Just focus."_

"_Focus, focus" the demon chimed again. Itami laughed._

_For a year, it went like that. Karasu would go to his lessons, and then teach Itami what he had been taught. All the while, their father would watch, glaring. It came to the point that everyone hated Itami, just so they wouldn't get on the Master's bad side. It had gotten to a point where Itami had Tracer out all day and all night because everyone would gang up on her. The nurses that had been there for her birth left when their mother died. Karasu and Tracer were the only ones in the entire house that wouldn't attempt to hurt Itami as she walked by them in the halls. Karasu and Tracer had just about had enough._

_Like the year before, her birthday wasn't the best day for her. It was only another reminder of how her life made everyone else's lives miserable._

"_Itami!" Karasu called. As he walked over to where she was sitting on the wall again. It had become her favorite spot in the whole house. That or the roof, she had come to like high places only her, Tracer and Karasu could get to._

"_Oh," she said, jumping down to stand next to him. "Good morning, Brother." She smiled._

"_Morning," he said. "And happy birthday." She smiled again. _

"_Thanks," she said. She sighed, "As usual you're the only one who remembered." She was still smiling. "Oh well." She was used to it, which, for a four year old, is a little sad._

_Karasu reached into his pocket and pulled out a cross pendant. He smiled as he saw his sister stare at it with a look of 'wow.'_

"_Happy fourth birthday," he said, holding it up for her to see._

_Itami squealed happily. Karasu laughed as he tied the strap around her neck. She turned and hugged him. "Thankyouthankyouthankyou!" He laughed and hugged her back._

"_You're welcome," he told her._

"_Oh, oh. Guess what? Guess what? Guess what?" she asked, twirling around her brother happily. She wore a dark gray Lolita dress with a thick black velvet strap around her waist like a belt. The creases in her skirt were black as well. She had a matching dark grey hat on her head, and part of her long hair was resting on her shoulder. She was still wearing a slight heel on her boots._

_He laughed again, "What? What? What?"_

_She laughed as she stopped. "I have something to show you," she said in a sing song voice most toddlers had._

"_Really?" he asked._

_She nodded. "Look." She cupped her hands in front of her. Tracer hovered next to her shoulder. She stared at her hands hard, and Karasu could feel her aura arising and surrounding her. After a few seconds, he was able to see it too. Looking down at her hands, he saw a bomb forming. When it was completely there, Itami smiled up at him. "I can make a bomb without it exploding on me."_

"_That's great!" he praised. "See, I told you you'd be able to do it."_

_She nodded. "I may not have learned as fast as you did, but at least I did learn."_

_Tracer squeaked a warning as their father made his way over to them._

"_Karasu, what are you doing?" he asked threw clenched teeth. "You have a lesson you're supposed to be at."_

_Karasu frowned. "It's Itami's birthday," he said. "I'm spending the day with her."_

_Their father growled and Itami ducked behind her brother, not realizing the bomb was still in her hand._

"_I have just about had it with this, Karasu," he growled. "You're always spending your free time with that. . . That thing, instead of working on your lessons."_

"_Itami's not a thing," Karasu snapped. "She's my sister and I won't treat her like a burden because she's not one!" Tracer chirped in agreement, hovering next to __**his**__ master's head. He only took orders from Karasu and Itami._

"_You could be ready to take over for me if it wasn't for her!" his father shouted._

"_I'm only nine!" Karasu shouted back. "Even if I was ready, I'm not old enough, nor will I be for awhile. There is NO harm in having a life with my little sister!" _

"_You're the only one who cares about her, Karasu," his father said in a deep tone. "Even your friend there can't protect her forever."_

"_You're the one who turned them against her!" Karasu yelled. "Your own daughter!" That did it._

_Their father roared. "I have nothing to do with that thing, and neither do you!" His face was turning purple due to the level of anger he held at the moment. "Now get out of the way!"_

"_No!" Karasu challenged, spreading his arms so his father couldn't cut around him to get to Itami._

"_Karasu," his father warned. "I'm warning you. Get out of the way."_

"_No," Karasu said again._

_Itami looked up at her brother, and then was roughly pulled away. She yelled in surprise._

"_Itami!" Karasu called, turning. Two of his instructors ran up and held him back. "What the hell!? Let me go!" No matter how hard he thrashed, the two teachers wouldn't release their grip on him._

"_Brother!" Itami yelled in fear. She was being held a good four feet in the air by her father's personal servant. Another servant was holding down a frantic Tracer. Itami kicked back, succeeding in hitting him in the stomach, he grunted in pain but didn't let go._

"_Now you'll learn the meaning of 'productive sacrifice,'" their father growled as he stalked around his son, heading for Itami._

"_Brother," Itami squeaked. She was on the verge of tears._

"_Itami!" Karasu yelled again, still trying to shake off his captives. Their father raised a hand._

"_Leave her alone!" Karasu yelled as he saw his father's aura creating a ball of power in his hand._

_Their father laughed maniacally. "You've gotten away with this for too long son," he said. He raised his arm a little higher. "It's time for you to learn an important life lesson." Itami whimpered as she wiggled her arms against the servant's hold._

"_NO!" Karasu screamed as his father's hand descended. It's target: Itami's heart._

_There was a huge blast of light as two auras collided. From where Karasu stood, he couldn't see much except his father shaking with the effort to push back the apposing aura. From where Tracer was though, he could see that Itami had gotten one of her arms free, and it happened to be the one with the bomb in it. She had pushed out against her father's attack, and was surprisingly holding him back._

_Karasu took the moment of shock that had overcome everyone to get away from his captors and push them back. He grabbed his father's shoulder and pulled him away from his sister, and used his father's shoulder as leverage to kick the servant holding Itami. He fell back, unconscious, as Itami fell to the ground, landing face first in the dirt._

_His father growled and turned on him. He had to use both hands to keep his father's fists from descending on him._

"_Tracer!" he called behind him. "Get my sister out of here!"_

"_B-But, Brother," Itami stuttered._

"_Now!' he shouted. He was slowly loosing against their father. _

_Itami was shaking, tears falling down her pale cheeks. She looked at the bomb in her hand, and tried to make it bigger. Her brother was now using his bombs to keep everyone away from them. Tracer whined and nudged her, trying to get her to stand and run. She wouldn't though. She refused to leave her brother alone like this. He was all she had. Tracer whined louder._

"_Run, run," it said. "Run, run!"_

"_No," she told him. "I won't run anymore!" _

_One of the teachers had broken through his student's line of defense and ran towards her. She stood, and when he was within distance, she spun, and planted her heel in the man's gut. He coughed up a little blood, and fell back. He was down for the count._

_She turned and ran towards her brother. She could feel the bomb in her hand growing with each step. Tracer cried as he followed her, getting closer to the one trying to kill her when the little demon wanted to be moving away._

_They were a foot away when their father overpowered Karasu and threw him to the side. _

"_Leave us alone!" Itami cried, bringing the bomb around and hitting him full in the stomach before he could bring his attack down on her. The clashing of auras swirled around the bomb, causing it to be impossible for Itami to detonate it. She pushed with both hands, and Tracer pushed her back._

_Another being behind her caused her to look up. Karasu helped as well, placing his hand over his sister's. It was two auras against one, and that was all that was needed._

_The bomb went off, engulfing everything around them: the house, the yard, the wall, the forest, and all the demons around them._

_When Itami was able to open her eyes again after the huge flash, she gasped in horror. Karasu held her bridal style as he stood, surveying the damage. Tracer rested in her lap, the little demon was as wounded and shaken as the siblings._

"_W-What have we done?" she asked shakily._

"_We broke away," her brother answered. "No one's going to hurt us again."_

"_B-But," she said, looking around. "What now?"_

"_Now that," Karasu said. "I don't know."_

_Itami shook in fear. Fear of the future, because everything that had been around them, everything and everyone the knew and grew up with, was gone._

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**Woot! I was able to do this within. . . I think it was about an hour non-stop. **

**I hope u enjoy it!! Next chapter will be up as soon as possible ' w '**


	11. Chapter 10: A Love For Pain

**Srry I havent updated lately. . . Dumb school. . . Well, here's the next chapter**

**To Clarify the name of the title:**

**Itami means Pain in Japanese, so the title is basically 'A Love For Itami'**

**Disclaimer: I DO NOT own Yu Yu Haksuho.**

**Itami is my OC**

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The start of their journey to the Demon world was quiet. Very quiet. No one seemed to bother them at all. Of course most demons knew to stay away from the Spirit Detective and his friends, but they were surprised Karasu's sister didn't try to attack them.

It was about midday when they came a an unknown forest. All of the tress and plant life within the forest, was completely dead.

"Are we going the right way?" Kuwabara asked, peering through the dead trees.

Kurama nodded. "According to Botan, the house used to stand on the other side of this forest."

"Well then," Yusuke said. "What are we waiting for?" He took the lead, walking through the trees. There was no set path, so the group had to duck, climb and trek around trees and branches to avoid any type of injury.

Even though they were dead, Kurama could hear them talk amongst themselves. Many of their conversations were directed at him. These trees somehow knew about his fight with Karasu, and they kept saying something about Itami and Tracer, he didn't know who they were, but had a hunch.

Yusuke and Kuwabara stopped abrupt idly at the other edge of the forest. Kurama and Hiei stopped just before running into them as they did.

"What now?" Hiei asked, annoyed.

"Uh, I think I knew what Koenma meant by the entire house was destroyed," Yusuke said.

"Hm?" Hiei and Kurama asked. They looked around their teammates and Kurama gasped.

There was absolutely nothing left in the little field where Botan said the house had once stood. The only thing left was some char marks off to the side.

"There literally isn't anything here," Yusuke said. "What the hell happened here? A nuclear explosion?"

"It's possible," Kurama said.

"Uh, I was being sarcastic," Yusuke pointed out.

"Yes," Kurama replied, nodding. "I know that. But think about it. Both Karasu and sister can control bombs. It's possible that they blew the place up. The question is, why?"

"Oh," Kuwabara said. "I get it now."

"Idiot," Hiei scoffed. He followed Kurama over to the char marks.

"14 years," Yusuke said aloud. "That's a long time to go without a home." Kuwabara nodded.

As the carrot top went to take a step forward, the ground under his foot blew up.

"Whoa!" he shouted, leaping back. Hiei and Kurama turned to see what had happened, and the ground they were heading towards blew up as well. They jumped back to stand next to Yusuke and Kuwabara.

"What now?" Kuwabara asked. "Why is the ground exploding on us?" "A trap?" Kurama asked.

"Possibly," Yusuke agreed. "Let's just carefully walked back to the forest and get out of here."

"That defeats the whole purpose of coming here in the first place," Hiei pointed out.

"Well," Yusuke said. "Do you want to explore, or get blown up trying?"

They stepped back, only to encounter another hidden bomb.

"Screw being careful," Kuwabara said. "Run!"

They all scattered in different directions, trying to avoid the hidden bombs so that they could keep their limbs intact. Kuwabara got hit in the leg, and was now limping. Even when Kurama and Hiei reached the trees, there were still hidden bombs, except for the fact that now they were even in the trees. Hiei grunted when he was hit in the back with one of the bombs that were on a branch.

"This doesn't seem to be working," Kurama told his friend as they dodged another branch.

"You're right," Hiei said. "And what happened to the idiots?"

"I don't know," Kurama said. "I hope that they're fairing better than us though." Hiei 'hn'ed.

A few seconds later, a huge explosion ripped its way in between them, throwing them in different directions. Kurama landed heavily in some dead bushes, the branches ripped at his arms and face as he landed in the dirt.

Groaning, he looked up from the blackened dirt. In front of him was a very, very small path. It was so small, that most of the plant life hid it completely. He stood and looked down the path.

Kurama started walking down it, being very wary of any bombs, and surprisingly, there weren't any. By now, he was very deep in the dead forest. The branches completely covered where the sky should have been, yet there was still light. Up ahead, he could hear something, but he was too far away to know exactly what it was.

He quickened his steps slightly so he was jogging through the underbrush. He could now see an opening ahead of him, where all the light was coming from. Just before he reached it, he tripped over a raised root, once again landing, face first, in the dirt.

Looking up, he saw the girl sitting on a wooden swing that had been tied up into a tree by rope. She was swinging back and forth, humming and singing to herself. The little Trace Eye sat next to a rolling fire that was in the middle of the small clearing, watching her. Behind it, and on the complete opposite side of where Kurama had landed, was a small hut that had been made out of the trees and other such plant life in the forest.

Kurama's attention was brought back to the girl on the swing. Her eyes were closed as she swung and sung, her mask tied loosely around her neck, and she was smiling. Her song was soft and sweet, like a song a mother would sing to her child. As she swung, her cross pendant would rise and fall against her neck. Her long black hair flew out behind her and caught the small amount of light in the clearing, making it shine.

He never thought he'd actually ever fall for a girl, but it seems that Kurama had, and for the girl who was after his life.

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**Again, I apologize it's been awhile**

**Please review!!**


	12. Chapter 11: All Pent Up

**It's been brought to my attention that I haven't updated this in forever. . . I'm sorry people! My internet decided to die on me and I've only recently gotten it fixed. I know, it's been awhile.**

**I actually have finished this story, so I'll be posting it all hopefully in this week.**

**I don't own YYH, but Itami is mine**

Another loud blast sounded throughout the forest. The girl sighed in annoyance and stopped the swing.

"Honestly," she said aloud. "It is not that hard to dodge the traps. Jeez. Is this detective seriously this dense?"

The Trace Eye shrugged, or, at least, Kurama thought it shrugged. Its little wings rose and fell again as it still sat. The girl sighed again and shook her head. The Trace Eye flew around her and nudged her back with it's head.

She laughed, "Alright, Tracer, alright. I'll keep swinging."

"Happy," Tracer chimed. "Happy, happy."

She smiled at it and set the little demon in her lap. "I am happy here. Brother and I loved it here." She set her head on the rope of the swing and frowned. She pet her friend's head and sighed again.

"Happy?" Tracer asked. He flew behind her again and pushed her, "Happy, happy!" She smiled lightly at him and started to swing again, closing her eyes.

Tracer hovered to her side, sort of flying as if he was swinging with her. "Happy," it said to itself. "Sister, happy."

'_Sister?'_ Kurama thought. _'What does he mean by that?'_

Tracer had stopped flying in time with the girl. Kurama ignored him, watching the girl swing back and forth. Problem was, Tracer had spotted him. It's very hard to hide in a dead forest when you have red hair.

Tracer squeaked aloud, causing the girl to dig her heel into the ground and stand up from the swing, all in one movement.

"What's up, Tracer?" she asked.

Tracer was flapping its wings quickly calling, "Fox, fox!"

'_Fox?' _Kurama thought as the girl asked it aloud.

"Fox, fox, fox!" Kurama noticed where the demon was looking.

'_Uh oh,' _he thought getting it. Apparently the girl noticed it to, and was also looking over at him. Kurama groaned in annoyance and stood.

The girl gasped when she saw him and took a slight step back, "You!" Tracer flew in front of her, his wings open in a protective way. The demon glared at him. Kurama looked back.

"How did you get here?" the girl demanded, her flare coming back. Her mask was in place over her nose and mouth and she glared at him with the same dark blue orbs her brother had.

"One of your bombs knocked me onto the small path," he replied in truth, looking straight at her. She growled and glared at him. "What is your name?"

"Huh?" she looked taken aback at that. She hadn't expected it.

"What is your name?" Kurama asked again.

She looked at him, and blinked. She was confused, but after she blinked, she was back to neutral. "Itami."

'_Pain?'_ Kurama thought. "You want to kill me for revenge?" It was a question. He was confused on Itami's reasoning to kill him.

He thought he saw a flash of pain pass her eyes. She answered him with a simple nod.

"You do know it wasn't my intention to. . ." She cut him off with a sharp growl.

"Shut up!" He stopped, keeping a calm face. "You say that but you don't mean it. You have dozens of plants that won't kill that you could have used to win that fight. Instead you used one that did! My brother was a demon by nature, he got his need to see others pain from our father!" Kurama saw her blue eye get bluer as tears welled up in them. "He was the only thing I had left in this world. If there's nothing to live for then what's the point in living?" That was a good question.

Tracer growled at him. Kurama met the demon's glare easily. It was protective, but it was also scared. His main worry was Itami. She misunderstood him, and he wanted to help. His reason why, was a slight mystery.

"Why was he your only thing to live for?" Kurama asked, hoping she won't stay silent.

He knew she was debating it. She stared at the ground, her eyes covered by her hair. "You're lucky," she whispered.

"Huh?" it was his turn to look confused. Even Tracer squeaked in surprise and looked at Itami.

"You still have your family," she explained. "Both of your parents love you, and your brother looks up to you. I never had that."

Kurama stayed silent, listening. He knew that was one of the things she needed: someone to listen to her, to help her get through the tough times. She was alone in life.

"I killed my mother when I was three," she continued. Kurama gasped. "Brother always told me it was never my fault. I didn't know about my powers, I didn't do it on purpose." Tears fell to the ground in front of her, and she shook from all the pent up emotions. "My father hated me. No one ever told me why. When I asked, both Brother and Mommy told me it wasn't my fault. He always favored Brother, and shunned me. When Brother would look after me and be nice to me, he got in trouble with Master."

"Master?" Kurama asked. She nodded.

"I was beat if I ever called him father." Kurama flinched. "When I was four, my bomb wiped away everything. Brother said it was self defense, it wasn't my fault. Nothing I did was my fault. I was never to blame." Her voice cracked through the tears. "But the tournament. . ." She hiccupped. "The tournament was. Brother entered it so he could find something better for us. Something better than this." She jerked her head to the small hut. Kurama looked at it.

"_Brother?" Itami asked tiredly. She rubbed her eyes. "How far are we going to go?" They had been walking through what was left of the dead forest all day. Itami stumbled behind Karasu._

_He looked at her and knelt in front of her. She crawled onto his back without question. "Not much longer, Itami," he told her as he stood and began walking again. "Not much longer."_

"_You said that the last time I asked," Itami muttered, her eyes closed as she almost went to sleep on his shoulder._

_He sighed, "I know." Itami fell asleep on his back. Tracer had been sent back to his realm so he could rest and recover as the siblings set out in the overly dead forest. Karasu said that they were going to find somewhere else to stay, but they had been walking all day, and night had past set._

_When Itami woke up again, she was curled against Karasu as he slept next to her. They were lying on the ground in a clearing. The trees slightly parted above them so she could see that the sun was beginning to rise. A small fire was rolling in front of her, that and her brother behind her explained why she was so warm and comfortable. She noticed bigger pieces of wood gathered at the other end of the clearing._

"_Itami?" Karasu asked as he sat up behind her. "Are you okay?"_

_She nodded. "What are we doing here?"_

_He smiled at her from beneath his mask. "I figured this was a good place to make our new home."_

"_Our new home?" she asked. He nodded._

"_Where no one will bother us, and no one will hurt you," he said softly. "And we'll always be together." She smiled at that._

_It took three days to completely set things up. Karasu built most of the house, and Itami and Tracer helped with a few things. Karasu had her weave ferns and leaves together to make beds as he went to look for food._

_One day, he came back with a plank of wood._

"_What's that for?" Itami asked. "Is it for the house?"_

_He smiled and shook his head. "The house is done, but I thought we could add one more thing." No matter how many times she asked, he wouldn't tell her what he planned to do._

_After a few failed tries, Itami gave up and moved through the forest. She had found a smaller clearing a few meters away, and Karasu said it was a good clearing to train in._

"_Come on, Tracer," she called, running over to the other end and facing her newest friend. "Let's focus."_

"_Focus, focus," the demon chimed. She smiled at him and started to practice some basic self defense moves Karasu had taught her that morning before he went hunting._

_Not long after, Karasu called her back. When she came into the clearing, she saw the piece of wood he had brought back tied into the tree with some rope he had found the other day._

"_A swing!" Itami cried excitedly. She ran over to him._

"_I thought you'd like it," he said, hugging her._

_She nodded, hugging back._

_He smiled and picked her up and set her on the swing. He pushed her and she was soon laughing as she swung back and forth. Tracer hovered next to Karasu, a little confused as to what they were doing, having never seen a swing before._

_Karasu stopped her lightly and she looked at him. He seemed a little worried and upset. "Are you. . . Happy here, Itami?" he asked._

_She smiled at him. "I'm happy anywhere you are, Brother." She got him to smile again. He started pushing her again, and as he did, he sung their mother's lullaby to her._

Tracer whined in worry as his Master's sister continued to cry.

**Once again, I apologize for the forever time it took for me to update. Plz review!**


	13. Chapter 12: Wasn't It?

**I don't own YYH, but Itami is my character**

_They lived like that for years. They were happy, being just the two of them and Tracer. Itami learned a lot from training with Karasu, and Tracer learned what his Master expected from him when Itami wasn't looking. Karasu didn't want her to worry, so he trained Tracer when she wasn't paying attention._

_It was a clear day when they came. A group of three men. All, in Itami's opinion, weird. She was swinging on the swing as Karasu stood behind her, occasionally pushing her, usually startling her, and trying to see how long she can go before she jumps off and runs after him for him to stop. It was a usual game they played together._

_They had found a demon town had been built a little past the other end of the forest. Karasu had taken Itami there many times for food and just to experience a new surrounding. Itami figured that was how they found out about them._

"_Are you Karasu?" one of them asked. He was tall, not as tall as the man beside him, but still as tall as her brother. He had long black hair and dark eyes. He held a lit cigarette in his hand, and there was a scar over his right eye. The tallest one had the darkest skin as well. He was easily two feet above the one beside him, and his muscles showed through his half open trench coat. His hair was dark and short. Black sunglasses hid his eyes from her. The shortest was also the palest. He sat on the tallest man's shoulders. He had long wavy hair and dark eyes. He sneered at her. She looked away from him and back to the man that had spoken, suppressing a shiver._

"_Who wants to know?" Karasu asked him in return. He stepped in front of Itami again. The smallest man chuckled at the action, and the tallest man smirked._

"_We have a proposition," the first man said. "There's a Dark Tournament coming up and. . ."_

"_Not interested," Karasu interrupted him._

"_Are you sure?" the smallest sneered. "It'll be rewarding."_

'_Re warding? How?'_ _Itami asked herself. Tracer was sitting in her lap now, watching the three cautiously._

"_What my brother means," the tallest added, "Is that the winning team gets any prize they wish." He looked at Itami. "It might be worth it." He looked back at Karasu. "Don't you agree?"_

_Karasu turned slightly to look at Itami as well. She looked back at him silently. Whatever they were talking about didn't have anything to do with her except that they were asking her brother to compete in some tournament._ _She didn't even catch the slight hint the tallest man had given._

_Karasu looked back at the men and motioned for them to follow him. At the same time he motioned for Itami and Tracer to stay where they were._

_Itami watched them go and lightly kicked the ground, swinging herself and Tracer back and forth a bit. It took a few more minutes for her brother to reappear. The three men left._

"_Who were they?" Itami asked._

_Karasu walked over to her. "Pack your things, Itami," he said to her. "We're going on a small vacation."_

_Itami tilted her head in confusion. On the way to Hanging Neck Island, he explained who the men were and what they had proposed. Of course she didn't want him fighting, but he assured her everything would be okay._

"_And I promise," he told her. He set his hands on her shoulders as he said it. "After this, we can move on. See more than just the forest, and finally leave everything behind."_

_Itami still seemed unsure._

"_I promise," he smiled at her._

_She finally smiled, "Okay, I trust you."_

"It was my fault," Itami cried, her head in her hands and her shoulders shaking as she cried. "If he wasn't worried about me he would have never joined the tournament, he would have never died!" Tracer had lost all of his angry demon side. He was trained to protect, not comfort. His Master did that, but his Master wasn't there.

"Sister?" it asked, using the word Karasu always used while talking to her.

Kurama walked towards them after hearing it all. Tracer looked at him, and he saw worry written in the little demon's one eye.

Kurama didn't stop until he stood in front of her and wrapped his arms around her shoulders. She gasped in surprise, but he didn't let her go.

"I didn't know," he told her. "I'm sorry, and I'm willing to make it up to you. To help you. If you'll let me."

'_If you'll let me.'_ The words rang through Itami's head.

"It wasn't your fault," Kurama said.

Itami cried again, gripping the shirt on his arms. Her head set on his shoulder. The words were so familiar to her. She had heard it a thousand times when she was young.

_She could feel her mother's shoulders shake a bit, and when she answered, it was quiet, "Whatever the reason, it's not your fault. It was never your fault."_

"_That wasn't your fault," he told her sternly. "You didn't know about the bombs, no one did."_

"_It wasn't your fault." _

'_Wasn't it?'_ she asked herself.

"Look out Kurama!" Yusuke yelled, and a second later, one of his ray guns ripped through the clearing, separating Kurama and Itami.

"Wait," Kurama called to him as he aimed at Itami again. "Yusuke, don't!" He fired.

**Review plz!**


	14. Chapter 13: Must Protect

**Last one for today. I'll post more tomorrow.**

**YYH is not mine!**

Kurama covered his face as the ground in front of him exploded. When he was finally able to see around him, he saw Itami dodging Kuwabara's attacks. She had jumped out of the way of Yusuke's attack, and right into where Kuwabara had showed up.

Tracer flew into action and zoomed around Kuwabara's head, screeching at the top of its lungs. Itami leapt away and up as Yusuke fired at her again.

"Yusuke, Kuwabara," Kurama yelled, standing. "Stop it, leave her alone!" He ran towards Yusuke.

Before he got there, he saw Itami land heavily on the ground at the other edge of the clearing, and Hiei landed on his feet below the tree she had leapt into. His sword was out at his waist.

Kurama took a double take on Itami and saw that her jeans were charred and ripped from Kuwabara's aura sword. The wound was bleeding into her jeans. There was a small cut on the left side of her mask, the wound was small and bleeding as well. Both of them had taken her by surprise.

"Yusuke," he said again as he came up to his friend.

"Are you okay, Kurama?" Yusuke asked him.

"Yes, I'm fine but. . ."

"Good," Yusuke interrupted. "We can handle her."

"What? No, Yusuke!" Kurama called again, but Yusuke had leapt back into the fight. "Ugh." Kurama ran after him.

Itami was hand to hand with Kuwabara. She dodged his sword and then punched or kicked him. She detonated one of her bombs that sent him flying back into the hut. Hiei took his place in fighting her. She didn't have any time to attack. Hiei was much faster than Kuwabara, and she had to focus completely on dodging.

Tracer screeched again, causing Hiei to flinch. Itami took that second of hesitation to flip kick her heel into the joint that his neck connected to his shoulders. Hiei put his arms up to block the main effort, but was still kicked into the ground. Itami tried to run again, but her way was blocked as Yusuke kept firing at her.

Each time Kurama came close to one of his friends, they'd interrupt him and then charge back at Itami. It was his turn to growl, in frustration.

Tracer was trying its best to annoy the crap out of the three fighters so that they would leave Itami alone and she could run. His screeching only lasted so long though. Even now, Kurama saw the little demon breathing hard, and its voice was rough and rasp.

"Move it you little runt," Kuwabara said, punching Tracer out of the way. The demon fell.

"Tracer!" Itami yelled. Kuwabara appeared in front of her.

Kurama ran and leapt forward, catching Tracer before he hit the floor.

"Kurama," Hiei called, leaping to the red head's side. Kurama sat up onto his knees. Tracer was barely awake in his arms. It was bruised and battered, and it's right wing was chipped.

"Hiei, we have to stop them," Kurama stated, standing.

"What?" Hiei replied. "Why the hell should we?"

"She's not trying to kill me anymore," Kurama explained. "We were only talking when Yusuke fired at her. She's misunderstood, and she feels guilty for everything that's happened to her."

"And that's our problem how?" Hiei asked.

"I promised her I'd help her," Kurama answered.

Hiei saw a look in his friend's eye he'd thought he'd never see, and nodded in understanding.

A shrill scream split the air, and the two whipped around to see that Kuwabara had missed his original target, but still had a solid hit. Itami held her hand over her left eye, and Kurama saw blood pour through her fingers.

"Kuwabara!" Kurama shouted as his friend raised his aura sword again. Kurama rushed forward, "Stop!" Hiei ran with him and parried the carrot tops attack with his own sword. Kurama changed his step and held Yusuke back from firing again. Tracer had left his arms and was fluttering over to Itami.

"What the hell, Hiei?" Kuwabara shouted.

"Stop it," Kurama pleaded. "Both of you, she's not a threat. Leave her alone!"

Both looked at him in utter confusion. They did not understand what was happening.

"Protect," the turned to Itami and Tracer. Itami was on her knees, both hands over her left eye. The sound had come from Tracer. "Protect. . . Sister," it said weakly. It looked at them and fluttered so it was flying in between Itami and them.

"Protect what?" Yusuke asked. Kurama slowly let him go. Kuwabara pulled back from Hiei and they both slightly lowered their swords.

"Sister," Tracer croaked.

"Sister?" Kuwabara asked.

"My brother," Itami spoke quietly, "trained him to protect me. 'Protect my sister for me,' he always told him." She made a sound, and Kurama wasn't sure if she was laughing or crying. "He always did worry about me."

"Protect sister," Tracer said again. Itami stood behind her demon friend. Both of her hands were covered in her own blood, and there was a lightning bolt shape wound over her eye. It was completely closed and she looked at them from her one eye. Her hoodie and jeans were torn and covered in dirt and blood. Her mask was ripped in a few places as well. Her black hair, normally sheek and straight down her back was frayed around her head and got into her face.

Her expression was hard, and guarded, but Kurama saw through it all, and saw the pain of being alone this past year, the guilt she felt for all the lives lost due to her not knowing her powers, and something he didn't understand. When she looked at him, her gaze softened, and she looked like the girl she had been on the swing when he first found this clearing. A young, carefree girl, wanting nothing more than to have fun and fall in love. A for all anyone knows, maybe she had. Tracer knew she had, it had scared her and she had told him, needing someone to talk to.

He liked Kurama. He wanted to help her, like he did, and like his Master did. He loved her, and Tracer would have been happy to trust the red head to look after his Master's sister. That was all she needed: a friend, family, someone she loved, who would love her back. Karasu might have liked Kurama if they had met outside the tournament.

Several bombs surrounded Itami, and Tracer pulled in their energy. This was new, even to Itami. The little demon started to glow a dark green color, and he grew bigger with each bomb he absorbed. Once all of the bombs were gone, he hovered.

"Tracer?" Itami asked quietly.

"Protect sister," Tracer repeated.

"What are you. . .?" she didn't finish, because she had figured it out. All the secret training sessions the little demon had with her brother, the explosion she'd hear when they were gone, everything added together. "No! Don't do it!"

"Protect. . . Sister. . . Promise!" the demon shouted hoarsely.

"Tracer," Itami cried.

The light got brighter, and a few seconds later, Tracer detonated himself.

When Kurama gained his sight back, the clearing was empty. The swing had broken off the ropes and now lay at the edge of the clearing, the hut was completely gone, and Hiei, Kuwabara, and Yusuke lay around him. Hiei sat up and blinked, regaining his sight as well.

"Where did she go?" he asked.

Kurama looked at a place through the trees.

"Go," Hiei said. He looked at their friends, "I'll keep theses two here."

Kurama nodded, "Thank you, Hiei."

He stood and walked through the part of the forest that he had noticed was trampled. The branches were bent and snapped and there was a small blood trail. Kurama hurried, afraid of the amount of blood Itami had lost.

He found her in the clearing that her family's house had stood. She was sitting against one of the trees, crying over an unconscious Tracer. He walked over and sat next to her.

She must have known it was him because she turned to cry on his shoulder. He wrapped his arms around her again and laid his head on hers.

"Why did he do that?" she asked.

"Shh," Kurama shushed, stroking her hair. "It's going to be okay. He did it to protect someone he loved. He did it to protect you."

"But did it have to be that extreme?" she replied. Kurama looked at Tracer in her arms. The little demon lay limp, its eye was closed, and its wings lay like pieces of crumbled papers at his side. He hugged her tighter.

"It's going to be okay," he said, he lifted her chin so she would look at him. She had taken her mask off, and he had a perfect view of her face. Her left eye was beyond repair, he could see that. He cheeks were stained with dirt, blood and tears, but he still saw the pale, like snow, skin of an innocent girl. The innocent girl he somehow loved. "It's going to be okay." He set his forehead on hers and looked her straight in the eyes.

She hesitated, as he knew she would. Everything and everyone she had ever loved had been taken from her, and she wouldn't be able to handle anymore pain of loosing someone important. She wouldn't let go of Tracer, and he hadn't expected her to. She held onto Tracer and him, both mentally and physically. Kurama embraced her in both ways as well.

A few minutes later saw Kurama carrying an unconscious Itami, bridal style, back to Genkai's temple. Hiei followed next to him, holding Tracer, which he surprisingly didn't mind. Yusuke and Kuwabara followed, still a little confused as to what was happening.

**Review plz. **

**Will post the ending to this tomorrow ****J**


	15. Chapter 14: This Might Work

_**Okay, as promised I am adding the last two chapters to this story **__**J**_

_**I don't own YYH**_

_Itami awoke the next day, and lay still, blinking at the ceiling. Although she only had half of her vision. After a few minutes of trying to figure out what happened, everything rushed back to her. She gasped and sat up quickly, knocking off a washcloth that had been resting on her head._

_Looking around her, she saw she was in a small room laying on a soft straw mat. There was a small table next to her with a bowl of water and some vials. There was a window above her that showed a bright blue sky and an old oak tree outside._

_She looked at herself. She had been changed into a white robe of some kind. The fabric was soft against her skin. She looked herself over._

_Her right thigh had a bandage around it. She had a band aid on her neck and over her nose, and more bandages around her stomach. When she reached up to her eye, she found it covered in bandages as well. _

"_Where am I?" she asked, looking around again. Just then, the sliding door across the room from her opened, revealing a girl with blue hair and red eyes._

"_Oh," the girl said. "You're awake." She smiled at her, "That's good. How are you feeling?"_

_Itami looked at her and asked, "Where am I?"_

"_You're at Master Genkai's temple," she replied._

"_Genkai's. . . temple?" Itami asked slowly. "How did I get here?"_

"_Kurama carried you here," she answered. She walked over to kneel next to her. "I was able to heal most of your injuries, e-except your eye." Itami sub-consciously reached up to the bandages. "I couldn't save your sight in your left eye. I'm sorry."_

_Itami shook her head and asked quietly, "Is he here?"_

_She smiled and nodded, "He's been waiting for you to wake up. I'll go get him." She stood and left. Itami looked after her and then down to her hands in her lap._

_Kurama appeared at the door a minute later. He smiled at her as he closed the door behind him. "How are you feeling?" he asked._

_Itami shrugged. "How am I supposed to feel. I was basically told that I'm blind in my left eye."_

_He nodded, his smile slipping slightly. "Yeah, Genkai beat Kuwabara for that. But other than that, how are you feeling?" He sat next to her._

_She looked back at her lap. "Terrible," she replied. Kurama lightly touched her hand._

"_It'll be okay," he told her. "I promised that I'd help you get through this, right?" She nodded. "And I will. But you have to let me help you."_

_Itami looked up at him. "What happened to Tracer?"_

_He smiled again. "I'll ask Yukina to get you a change of clothes, and then you can come out and talk with us. Okay?"_

_She was confused. Why didn't he answer her. She nodded anyway. He squeezed her hand for a moment and then left. The girl with blue hair returned a few minutes later with a light gray T-shirt and black jeans._

"_You can change into these and come out whenever your ready," she told her. Itami nodded again, and Yukina left._

_Itami changed, and sat for a few minutes under the window. She pulled her knees to her chest and rested her head on them. She sighed._

"_Can he really help me?" she asked herself. "Do I even dare open up to love again?" She sighed again._

_After a few more minutes, she stood, put on some slippers that were left for her, and walked out of the small room. She didn't see anyone right away, but she did hear talking down a small hallway. She followed the sounds to what seemed to be the yard. It was a little hard with only half of her sight. She let her left hand trail the wall so she wouldn't run into anything._

_The carrot top was sitting on the steps next to the girl with blue hair. He was covered in bruises and his arm was in a sling. The spirit detective was laughing at something as he sat next to another girl with brown hair. The woman Itami knew as Genkai was standing behind him with her arms crossed behind her back. She was the first to notice her._

"_Hello there," she said. The spirit detective stopped laughing, and him and all the others looked back at her._

"_Hello," Itami said._

_Genkai smiled at her and said, "Ignore these two buffoons. No one's going to hurt you here."_

_Itami looked beyond them into the yard. Kurama was standing at the base of the small set of stairs. Itami walked by the others to stand next to him on the last step, which made her that same height as him. He smiled at her and looked out into the yard. Itami followed his gaze._

_The smaller demon, Hiei, was swinging his sword around, attempting to catch a little green blur that was happily buzzing in and out of his reach. From what Itami knew about Hiei, he hated when demons teased him like this, but he looked like he was enjoying himself._

"_Is that. . .?" Itami started to ask. The green blur stopped and looked at her. Tracer hovered in front of Hiei, who had his sword resting at his side when he saw her. His right wing was chipped and he had bandages wrapped around his little head._

"_Itami!" the demon called._

_Itami gasped. Tracer had never actually learned her name._

_She smiled, "Tracer!" She ran forward, and Tracer met her half way. "You're all right!"_

_Tracer buzzed excitedly around her head, all the while calling, "Itami! Itami!"_

_Itami hugged her little friend and looked over at Kurama._

_He walked over to her, smile still in place, and explained, "Yukina was able to heal him. Hiei was up all night attempting to teach him your name."_

_Itami looked at Yukina, and then to Hiei. Yukina was smiling. They were all smiling at her. Well, Hiei was smirking, same concept with him._

"_And we're sorry about yesterday," Yusuke said, rubbing the back of his head. "We didn't know the full story."_

_Itami looked at him and smiled, "It's okay."_

_Her smile through him off for a second, and then he returned it._

"_You're welcome here," Genkai told her. "If you'd like."_

_Itami looked at Tracer. The demon flapped his wings happily and flew around Hiei's head. Hiei watched him and caught him on the third spin around. Itami smiled as the demon flapped his wings again in Hiei's arms._

"_For as long as you want," Genkai finished. Itami looked back at her, and looked over everyone else as well. She looked to Kurama last, and for the longest._

"_We all want to help," he said to her quietly._

_Itami nodded slightly and shrugged. She replied just as quietly, "It's worth a try. I guess."_

_Kurama nodded, and hugged her. It took her a moment, but she hugged back, set her cheek on his shoulder._

_Tracer squealed happily and started fluttering around again._

"_Does this mean I won't have to do so many chores, Grandma?" Yusuke asked Genkai._

"_Don't bet on it punk," she replied._

_Yusuke pouted, and Kuwabara laughed at him. Kurama shook his head and Hiei rolled his eyes. The brunette sitting next to Yusuke groaned in frustration and Yukina giggled. Itami smiled as Tracer landed on her shoulder. She petted his head._

_This could work out_ she thought.

**Lol. I was looking at some of the reviews you guys left, and I noticed that it did seem that I killed off Tracer. I couldn't though. I love the little guy too much, and he is an important character, to Itami anyway**

**Next chapter is up!**


	16. Chapter 15: I'm Sorry

**Last chapter! More of an epilogue but whatever.**

**I don't own YYH**

**Enjoy!**

She did stay for a few months. She enjoyed helping Genkai and Yukina around the temple. She rarely talked though. Kurama could get her to talk, but he was the only one, and she refused to talk about her parents or brother.

What surprised everyone was Hiei. Whenever he wasn't watching over Yukina, he was with Itami and Tracer. Kurama would come from school and find Hiei teaching Itami how to sword fight.

The first time, he was almost hit. He didn't know that they were fighting as he was walking up the steps. At the top, he was met with the sharp point of a katana.

Itami squeaked and turned towards him, bringing the sword down to her side. "I am so sorry, Kurama," she apologized.

Kurama looked over at Hiei, who was smirking.

"It's ok," he said slowly. "Um, what are you doing?"

"I'm teaching her how to fight," Hiei answered him. "And Itami, your using too much wrist, that's why you almost hit him."

Everyone noticed changes in Kurama and Hiei with Itami around. Kurama was more open, he wasn't all about his human jobs: his homework, his family, etc. He cared for Itami, and everyone knew it. Hiei was more relaxed around her. He was even talking more openly with Yukina. He still hated Yusuke and Kuwabara, but not on a killing level anymore. Even Itami was more relaxed. She wasn't jumping at anything anymore, but she still kept to herself. Everyone let her, because it was obvious that everyone cared.

Genkai even got into training Itami. She even told her that she felt like Itami was family to her, like Yusuke was.

Everything was going very well for Itami and Tracer. Everyone noticed how close her and Kurama got.

One night, about eight months after Itami first started living at the temple, Kurama awoke from a slight tapping on his window. He thought it was Hiei, back from a patrol round in the Demon realm. When he stood up and walked over to the window, he saw that it wasn't Hiei, it was Itami, and she was crying.

"Itami?" he asked, opening the window. "What's wrong?" Itami jumped into his room from where she had been crouching on the tree branch. She launched into his arms and cried into his shoulder. Kurama held her, hugging her tightly to him as he waited for her to calm down enough to talk.

"What's wrong?" he asked softly, as her sobs quieted.

"I-I," she stuttered, still trying to catch her breath.

Kurama wiped a tear off of her cheek with his thumb, "Calm down. Everything's fine."

Itami took a few deep breaths, "I had a dream that my bombs killed you all."

"What?" Kurama asked.

Itami shook her head quickly, "It was so real. It scared me cause when I woke up I couldn't find Master Genkai, Yukina or Hiei." Itami was shaking so hard it was visible.

Kurama rubbed her arms and hugged her again, "It was just a dream, Itami. Hiei's out patrolling and Master Genkai and Yukina had to go talk to Koenma. We're all fine."

Itami was crying again, quieter this time. "It was so real. I don't want to lose you guys. Especially you, Kurama."

Kurama stroked her hair, "You haven't nor will you. I'm not going anywhere, Itami. I promise."

Itami looked up at him and whispered, "Promise?"

Kurama nodded, "Promise." He had kissed her that night, and what surprised him was that she kissed him back. Everyone knew they liked each other, and they supported them both when Itami agreed to Kurama's human terms of dating.

"Hey, Itami," Kurama said one day.

"Hmm?" Itami asked, half asleep. She was comfortable in her position sitting in Kurama's lap with her head against his shoulder. Tracer was asleep in her lap, after training with Hiei, and being petted by both Kurama and Itami.

"Would you like to meet my human family?" Kurama asked.

Itami looked up at him. "Your human family?" she asked.

Kurama nodded, "I'll know they'll love you." He smiled.

Itami thought for a second, thinking back to when she had first seen his family back when she still wanted to kill him. She knew they were nice, but she wasn't sure if they would like her. Kurama hugged her around the waist, making her look back up at him.

"It'll be fine," he said. "I'll be there the whole time."

Itami reluctantly smiled, "Okay. Let's see where this takes us."

Kurama had to hold back laughter throughout that night. His mother had been thrilled he had invited his girlfriend to dinner with the family, and Itami had no idea what to make of her. Before Kurama could even open his own front door, his mother had opened it, having been waiting by the window, and pulled Itami into a hug. The lost look on Itami's face made Kurama laugh to himself.

After that, Shiori had pulled Itami into the house and into the living room. There, she circled Itami. Itami followed her with her head. Yukina, Keiko and Shizune had taken her out shopping and had somehow gotten her into a dress. It was a navy blue dress that fell to her knees. The sleeves didn't hang off her shoulders, the shirt cut straight across her chest, clinging to the sides of her arms in kimono like sleeves. The sleeves were slit all the way down so they fell off her arms in veils when she held them up. Her hair was pushed back by a navy blue headband. Her same colored sandals had a slight heel to them and the straps wrapped around her ankles. The dress greatly illuminated her good eye. Of course Shiori noticed the light blue left eye with the lightning bolt scar.

"What happened here?" she asked Itami, lightly touching the younger girl's cheek. Kurama's stepfather and brother moved slightly from where they were sitting on the couch to look. Kurama stepped between them, giving Itami some space.

"I was in a car crash," Itami said, using the story her and Kurama had agreed on beforehand. "About a year ago."

"Oh, you poor thing," Shiori said. "Let's have some dinner, shall we?" She smiled warmly. Itami shyly smiled back and nodded. She allowed the woman to lead her into the dining room. She was sat next to Kurama and his stepfather who was at the head of the table. Shiori and Shuichi sat across from them.

"So, Itami, right?" the stepfather asked. Itami nodded. "Interesting name. Who gave it to you?"

Itami replied, "My father did."

Kurama's stepfather nodded, "What do your parents do?"

"Have any siblings?" Shuichi added.

Itami bit her lip and glanced down at her hands in her lap. Kurama set his hand over hers and answered for her, "Itami's an orphan."

Shiori gasped, "You poor dear. We're sorry."

Itami shook her head and smiled, "It's alright. My parents both died when I was young and my brother died in a recent accident at work. But I've been living with Master Genkai lately, so I've been well taken care of. I even have an adopted brother and sister. Shuichi's helped a lot too."

Kurama's stepfather laughed, "That's our boy. Always willing to help."

The night went surprisingly well. Well, it was surprising to Itami. She liked Kurama's family, and they did like her. She found herself laughing with them most of the night. Kurama walked her back to the temple.

"That was fun," Itami stated, still smiling.

"Good," Kurama said, wrapping his arm around her shoulders. "I told you they'd like you." Itami nodded, leaning into him.

Hiei met them at the stairs with Tracer on his shoulders. Kurama laughed, "I got her back on time, Hiei."

Itami laughed, "Hi, Ni-sama."

Hiei smirked at her. He and Yukina had adopted her as another sibling, and Hiei took pride in his effectiveness in keeping her happy and safe.

"Just making sure," he replied.

Kurama shook his head, "What, you don't trust me?"

"As a friend sure," Hiei shrugged. "As a boyfriend, not so much."

"Gee, thanks," Kurama replied.

Itami laughed and kissed Kurama's cheek. "See you tomorrow, Kurama-kun."

Kurama chuckled, "See you tomorrow."

It went like that for a few years. Kurama got his own apartment, but he and Itami agreed to wait until he was done with college before she moved in with him. She still stayed over every now and then, though. Itami was back in school as well. She finished a home version of high school with Kurama's help and was looking into college courses herself, with Master Genkai and Keiko's help. She thought her life was perfect, finally. Except for the fact that everything perfect she's ever had, has always been lost to something.

"What?" Itami asked, quietly.

Yukina nodded, "It's true, Itami. I wouldn't lie to you about this."

Itami bit her lip.

Yukina asked, "Will you tell Kurama?"

Itami shook her head, "He just started classes. He'll put those on hold if I tell him. I don't want him to do that."

"But," Yukina started.

Itami shook her head again and reached over to place her hand on Yukina's, "Please don't tell him, Yukina. Please. Just tell him it's the flu and you'll keep an eye on me here. He's been studying for weeks to get into these classes. Please Ne-chan."

Yukina sighed, "Okay, I won't tell him. What about Hiei?"

Itami sighed, "I want to tell Ni-sama, but he'd definitely tell Kurama. He might act fierce when it comes to us dating, but Kurama's still his friend. He'd tell him."

Yukina was quiet for a second, "What are you going to do, Itami? I know that look, you're going to do something stupid."

Itami sighed, "I won't ruin what you guys have, Yukina."

"You won't!" she cried. "Kurama will be thrilled, I know he will be. You guys can work something out so he can still keep his classes. We'll all help."

Itami faked a smile, "We'll see, Yukina."

Yukina didn't notice that the smile was fake, and nodded, "Alright, we'll see." Itami nodded. Once the door was shut behind her and Yukina was gone, Itami let her smile slip. Tracer was summoned to her side.

"Come on Trace," she said reluctantly, trying to hold back tears. "I'd say we've done enough damage here." She looked down, "More than enough trouble." Tracer whined.

The next morning, just before the sun rose over the hills, Itami walked up the slope by the temple. At the top, she set her pack down. She set her katana, a gift from Hiei when she finally mastered the sword, on top of it. She looked over her shoulder at the temple. She wrapped her arms around herself. She would not cry. Not matter how hard this was, she would not cry.

Tracer whined next to her and nudged her in the direction of the temple. Itami shook her head.

"No, Tracer," she said, trying to keep her voice calm. "They've helped me enough."

Tracer asked, "Itami. . . Love. . . Everyone."

Itami nodded, "Of course I love them. That's why I have to leave." She looked back at the temple. She sighed, "I'm sorry, Kurama, but I can't stay." She turned her back on the temple, and picked her stuff up. Her pack went over her shoulder and the katana sat at her hip, matching her brother. "Let's go Tracer." She walked into the woods, and the shadows of the early morning quickly hid her from view.

A few hours later, Yukina asked Genkai, "Have you seen Itami? I haven't seen her all morning."

The older woman smiled and replied, "She might be with either Hiei or Kurama. She'll probably be back later."

Kurama walked up to the temple, "Hello everyone."

"Oh, hello Kurama," Yukina greeted. "Is Itami with you?"

Kurama looked puzzled, "No. I had class today. She's not here?"

Yukina shook her head, "I haven't seen or heard from her all day. It's worrying me because she usually checks in with either Master Genkai or myself."

Kurama tried to smile, "Maybe she's with Hiei."

"Who might be with me?" Hiei asked, coming to stand next to the red head.

"Itami," Kurama answered.

Hiei shook his head, "I thought she was here."

"She's not," Yukina told him, letting the worry into her voice. "I have a bad feeling about this. We have to find her."

Kurama and Hiei searched until the moon was well over their heads. Yusuke and Kuwabara were called in half way through. No one could find her. When they returned to the temple, Yukina was sitting in Itami's room, crying.

"Yukina, what's wrong?" Kurama asked.

Yukina didn't answer. Instead, she held up a piece of paper.

"I. . ." she started, trying to breath between sobs. "I found this. . . under Itami's. . . pillow."

Kurama took the paper and read it. He let it drop to the floor and ran out again. Hiei picked it up and stared at it.

"What is it?" Yusuke asked.

Hiei clenched the paper in his fist, "She left."

"What?" Yusuke cried. "Why?"

Hiei glared at the ground, "She thought she was burdening us."

Kurama stood on the slope and panted, "Itami!"

**Okay, hopefully I don't get killed for this ending. . .**

**If anyone is interested, there will be a sequel to this. It might help explain a little more. If anyone is interested in reading it, just tell me**

**Thank you to everyone who has read up to this point and reviewed! **


	17. Author's Note

**Me:** For anyone that is interested, there is a sequel to this story

**Josh:** I know a lot of you want to kill Ray for that cliff hanger

**Me: **^^;

**Josh:** Anyway, look at her page and the title of the sequel is Foliage and Explosives. It's not done yet, but she's working on it

**Me:** I've been busy with school, but I will get back to it. . . Sooner or later

**Josh: **It had better be sooner if you want to keep your tail in one piece

**Me:** um. . . I'm working on it!


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